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The 'One Thing' singer says the band look after each other on tour when they miss home.

One Direction star Zayn Malik says the hardest part of being in a hugely successful boy band and travelling across the world is missing his family.

The 'Gotta Be You' singer says despite all the perks that come with being in such a popular group, their speedy rise to fame has made it difficult to see their friends and relatives as much as the five-piece band would like.

"Guess the hardest part is being away from home so much and missing our friends and family," Zayn revealed during an interview with Tumblr's Storyboard project.

"But then again I get to travel with four of my closest friends all around the world, so we keep ourselves positive," the 'One Thing' star continued. 'And fans helps us a lot as well!"

The 19 year-old pop singer also commented on how much the internet has helped One Direction grow their fan base across the world in such a short space of time.

He added: "The internet helped us jump all the classic hurdles that bands had back in the day."

View a picture of One Direction performing live in Los Angeles on their recent US tour below (Credit: PA):

In the same interview Harry Styles named Coldplay frontman Chris Martin as his biggest idol, and credited the 'Paradise' singer's singing and songwriting ability as reasons why.

One Direction are hard at work on the follow-up to 2011's 'Up All Night', and are expected to announce details of their upcoming second album in the coming months.